Italianni’s Cinco Magnifico, Flavors From The Regions of Italy

Last wednesday, I was introduced to Italianni’s five new delicious dishes that is inspired by the five regions of Italy ~ The Cinco Magnifico.  There was lots of smiles and a very warm welcome. It was very much like having a special dinner with the family in a quaint Italian villa.

We had Spinach and Artichoke Formaggio {P625} for starters. It’s actually one of my favorite appetizers of all time. It’s made up of spinach, artichoke and mushroom in a blend of creamy, gooey cheeses. It is served with garlic bread for dipping.

You know, one of the things that I love about Italianni’s is that it doesn’t claim to serve authentic Italian dishes. They’re more of an American-Italian Restaurant and that’s a good thing because it’s much closer to the Filipino taste. And judging by the big servings of the dishes, very family-oriented too.

We started with Umbria. Umbria{P575} is composed of grilled chicken stuffed with asparagus served on a bed of shiitake mushrooms, mozzarella and florentine, spring salad, marinara and pasta. I love this dish’s rustic appeal, mostly I’m drawn to the stuffed mushroom and the asparagus inside the chicken.

Cinco Magnifico is inspired by the flavors of the produce coming from the five regions of Italy namely Umbria, Marche, Lombardy, Basilicata and Veneto. It is like bringing Italy here in the Philippines by letting you experience the history, culture and traditions of each regions through their food.

Basilicata was my favorite among the dishes that were served. Basilicata{P525} is choice cut pork chop marinated in herbs and spices served with Italian salsa, pasta and florentine sauce. I loved the herbed-peppercorn gravy, it was very tasty and it was perfect with the porkchops.

If you are fond of seafood, I’m absolutely sure you will love Marche {P525}, grilled grouper fillet served with pesto rice and mixed vegetables. This is inspired by a region that is between two bodies of water boasting of the freshest catch. The pesto rice is very flavorful and the mixed vegetables that accompanied it is also very tasty. I wonder what’s the secret of those mixed veggies?

Veneto{P495} is pan-seared airline chicken with Romano, Parmigiano and Marinara sauce served with cheesy spaghetti. The creamy pasta is the perfect partner with the crispy chicken.

We weren’t able to try Lombardy which is fresh sautéed shrimp with assorted wild mushroom over pasta.

To finish off our sumptuous meal, we were served Chocolate Eruption{P395}, a rich, dense chocolate cream shredded with nuts and turtle cheesecake cubes topped with more nuts, shredded chocolate and caramel..

…And a big slice of New York Cheesecake{P450} served on a bed of strawberry-amaretto sauce. I’m certain that this cheesecake and I will see each other again some other time…

Thank you so much for a memorable evening Italianni’s!

Italianni’s Restaurant
Level 1, Al Fresco Dining Area
Midtown Wing
Robinson’s Place Manila
5671913 / 5672247